Summary: So I’m Researching Fixed gear bikes and their online communities and I came across a lot of online forums specifically about fixed gear bikes and a lot of them are mainly tied around there real community outside of the online world. Forums such as, Sacfixedgear.com, Davis Fixed, LA Fixed, Aloha Fixed, SJ Fixed, and tricktrack.org. There all of these people online talking about these bikes. This is a way for them to communicate about the latest parts, the sickest builds, the coolest tricks, the best places to ride. The list goes on and on about discussions about everything you can think about fixed gear bikes, and then some. The forum that I am mainly checking out is Tricktrack.org. I was on this forum and just going through it you can see its where everyone everywhere with a fixed gear bike is communicating. I see people on there from Sacramento, San Jose, New York; all are there with this common interest, fixed gear bikes. There’s also a place where either “noobs” or new people that are just getting into it can go and find out more so they can start riding a fixed gear bike.
Response: This Forum is a great place for a person to be informed about fixed gear bikes. It’s a place where anyone who is interested in this style of riding goes and just talks about pretty much everything! I can see people from everywhere on there. There’s even a place for Vendors to talk about this new releases or new items that they’re going to start making. Forums such as tricktrack.org, Sacfixedgear, SJfixed…etc. are great places for anyone to talk about fixed gear bikes and tell everyone what they have to offer to new information.
Usefulness: These forums are very important to my research because they really show how online communities communicate about fixed gear bikes.
Kiljan Cochran
Listen out for the dubstep revolution
by Nick Kelly
Summary: The article talks about how the dubstep scene is expanding beyond the local underground. In 2006 BBC radio dedicated a full show to the genre called Dub Warz. DJ Mary Anne Hobbs also organized a show showcasing dubstep at last years Electronic Arts festival. The article also mentions three artists that helped popularize dubstep. Skream, Burial and Kode 9. The author also has a strong hunch that dubstep will explode this summer.
Response: I like this article. It answered a lot of my questions about how dubstep is growing. And it explained more how dubstep emerged from the heart of london.
Usefulness: Its usefulness definitely opens the doors to more research. Almost every word was a link to more articles or forums about dubstep.
Summary: The article discusses the Italian Supreme Court taking action against illegal file-sharing. The court already, in 2008 ordered ISP's to block bittorent sites, however it was overturned. They've now declared that all ISP's block bittorent sites even if they are outside of the country. The court said the sites, "[constitute]a form of complicity in the offense of copyright infringement."
Response: The article is useful because one of my questions is wondering what governments are doing to prevent file-sharing in their countries. The italian government is the first "successful" issue of blocking file-sharing sites from their citizens. I expect to look into this more, and find out if any countries are following this too.
Usefulness: The article is useful because it helps me answer a question I've been asking, and it also gives me a great site to continue my research on my topic. I can keep updated with current news on the illegal file-sharing and music industry areas.
Summary:This article discusses the dangers and the lack of knowledge that come along with the popular website chatroulette.com. Since the site is lacking major popularity, but has since rushed and began taking over the internet scene, chatroulette.com is a place for first users to explore. Here in this article we see at a university a conference call was made to set up an interview through chatroulette.com. The people doing this did not realize that the site does not directly connect people but by random. These people were exposed to people while doing this and now face charges.
Response:When reading this my initial reaction was, why would someone use something without any knowledge. Then I thought about it and it makes complete sense. People initially are going to want to explore new things to see what they are all about. This explains some of the popularity with the site. People are willing to try something, but will the popularity continue after people try it, and are exposed to th efeatures that come along with the site?
Usefulness:This articles usefulness is important in my opinion because it shows the range that this site has reached out to. People are using at universities, people are exploring all over the world. The site has caught so much attention that it will continue to become popular, until people realize what the site truly holds.
Summary: The Burj Khalifa is currently the tallest building in the world. This website gives an allotment of information ranging from statistics, interest in visitation, the surroundings, whats inside, how it was built, and more. The Burj can attract people for many different reasons. Site seeing is amazing here with the tallest observation deck in the world. One can rent or by a space to live in and companies may buy or rent out floors for business. Certain floors are designated as hotel space for travelers to stay with water features, a fitness club, a park, and a club for entertainment. Response: I found that there was a lot more to the Burj than I had originally expected. The building occupies many different features and serves as a multipurpose building attracting various types of individuals. It was interesting to learn about the structural soundness of the building and how it was achieved. Since Dubai is currently in debt I would like to know more about how much this structure actually cost and how many floors are currently occupied bringing in profit. I would also like to look into how the people live there since this building seems to be a community within itself and how those people operate. I would also like to know how this has affected the surrounding communities as well since it is located in the heart of Dubai. Usefulness: This site not only answers almost every question about the Burj but also shares links to useful cites for nearby entertainment since it is located in the center of downtown Dubai. I would like to use this information to look into the nearby entertain and touch on the surrounding communities as I discussed earlier. I can also use this information to compile a list of technological achievements for my paper since it has many statistics and comparisons in it. BBC- How Damaging is Illegal File-Sharing?
Reviewed by: Cody Keller
Summary: The article talks about how about the effects of Illegal File-Sharing/Downloading on the economy of the UK and the potential risks if the act of downloading is continued. The article states: "the report says that almost 10,000 new jobs would be created if peer-to-peer piracy was 100% eliminated." It goes on to say, "up to 800,000 jobs in the creative industries, out of 1.8 million in total, are threatened almost half of the entire industry equivalent to 8% of GDP." In the end the article describes that illegal file-sharing needs to be stopped in order to help save some of the economy.
Response: The article is somewhat helpful. There are numerous replies via posts at the end in response to the article. It's very helpful to read what people have to say from a personal level, and I think it also helps me to develop my own view and taste on the subject.
Usefulness: I find the article very useful, referring to the comments everyone posted at the end in response to the article, as I already stated. I think it will help me further pursue forums and/or blogs on the matter because I know now that they exist and that this topic is very much active and seems highly debated and contested.
The Growth of Dubstep, offline
Reviewed by: Kiljan Cochran
Summary: The article talks about how Dubstep has been accelerating at a constant exponential rate since the early 00's, and how one of the main causes for this is the internet. The article then steers towards the titles meaning, talking about how festivals and raves are over looked when determining the advancement of the genre.
Response: This article I actually found exciting. It went on after to elaborate on a club night called Hospitality. It jumped around not really describing the vibe of the festival or what style of Dubstep, but did grab my attention.http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=351991 This is the link where tickets can be purchased.
Usefulness: The article was useful in the sense of better understanding the progression and expansion of dubstep. The internet allows artists to demo and disperse there music for little to zero dollars, and also untill recently how the rave community, literally, as in a community offline, is helping spread the word.
Summary: I finally settled on a topic for the year, "Dubstep". It's a genre of dance music that most often consists of heavy bass and extreme resonance alteration. During my research I found an article on Dubstep simply called, What is Dubstep? It gives brief history on how Dubstep emerged in in the UK dance scene in 1999. The term Dubstep was not coined until 2002 however. The article simply explains the basics of the genre. Most Dubstep songs can be recognized by a tempo of 140 beats per minute, which usually resembles a 2-step rhythm. By 2006 , Dubstep had skyrocketed and was gradually being integrated in the American dance/rave scene.
Response: What is Dubstep? Well fortunately I'm very fond and familiar with the genre, so I had a general consensus. As for someone with no knowledge of Dubstep, this article is to broad. Dubstep is a very unique genre and simply can not be though of as "Dance Music".
Usefulness: The article was definitely to broad, but it does reach a consensus that leaves readers with basic knowledge of the genre. Certainly enough to provoke exploration of Dubstep.
The Palms Dubai
If you are researching aspects of community in online contexts, post your research annotations here.
Reviewed by: Lissa Cunningham
The Palms Dubai
Summary: I found an article on “The Palms” Dubai that relates to my previous article of “The World” Dubai. The World was an idea that sprang from the concept of The Palms. The Palms Dubai are also manmade islands but instead in the shape of a Palm Tree. There are three of these “palm trees” named Palm Jabel Ali, Palm Jumeirah, and Palm Deira. The islands are shaped as a palm tree for the purpose of creating more beach front locations as appose to one circular island. Almost every location has a beach front view. The Palm Jumeirah has been fully completed and has some residents moved in. For entertainment there is everything from shopping malls to water parks. You can get to the island via the mainland or there are a series of sub-sea tunnels being created for alternate transportation.
Response: Nakheel is the developing company who has been creating all the islands. The article states that the ruler of Dubai came to Nakeel with the idea of The Palms. The article states that, “few realize it was created to help solve Dubai's beach shortage.” This was really an innovative, abstract way of solving this problem. And it seems to have worked. Dubai now has substantially more beach fronts than they did before. Unfortunately most production has stopped so only a small portion of it is actually usable.
Usefulness: After viewing the massive productions involved in creating the islands I began to wonder how this would be affecting the environment. There is an enormous amount of construction at sea happening that I would imagine is disrupting a wide variety of sea life and their habitats. The only environmental issue that this article addressed is that The Palm Jebel Ali helps pioneer sea grass research. It states that the marine life around the island is flourishing but was it damaged during construction? This would be something to consider for future productions. Nakheel has a plan that is on hold to build The Universe in the same way. Before production begins I think environmental issues should be addressed more in depth and more publicly.
Reviewed by: Brian MacMillan
Fears over Facebook identity Fraud
Summary: This article describes how when people use facebook that they put too much personal information on their page and it lets hackers easily steal from others. The article goes into detail about how facebook has become extremely popular in the UK. The problem in the UK is that facebook asks for such personal questions from when they were a child to when they are an adult that it is very easy for hackers to hack into peoples personal items such as their bank accounts. These questions are so personal that if you were to open an account at a bank the bank would ask you similar questions. The article then goes on how online banking fraud has gone up 44% in the last year and this is a major problem because if people are putting this personal information online then it will be even easier for hackers to hack into places. This is becoming such a major problem because an estimated 10,000 people are joining facebook a day. The article then goes on on how to stop these hackers that they need to ask the customers specific questions that only that person would know so the hackers would have no chance of stealing.
Response: After reading this article I feel very different about what I exactly put on my facebook page. If that many people are being hacked and stolen from then I agree with the article in that there needs to be better protection. The author I thought did a great job in making it very clear that some of the stuff people are putting on their facebook page is too personal and in the end they could end up getting stolen from.
Usefulness: This article is very useful to me when starting my paper. It allows me to give statistics and inform people about what is going on with facebook. When starting my paper I will be able to pull information out of this article and relate it to my topic. This will become a huge roll in my paper and is a great starting point.
This is article is about a new website that is connecting people randomly, allowing people to see someone at random choice through their computer screen. The site is called chatroulette.com and your are connected with a person that you do not know and you are able to talk to them and if you choose you can click the next button and go to a different person. The article describes a man going on it and meeting people from all different ages and from different parts of the world. The article discusses the awkward encounters met through this website. “Exhibitionists proudly display their genitalia, unruly teens toss up middle fingers for sport, and then, the lonely, vacant faces. There are swarming masses of self-conscious suburban girls, Japanese soldiers, sadomasochists from Brooklyn, amateur surfers in Melbourne, mostly inebriated college students.” The author shows the danger that comes along with this popular website.
This makes me wonder why there are no regulations on this website. I feel like an incident is waiting to happen before a lawsuit occurs. I find this website to be interesting but I do not understand why there are no regulations on the website. I feel as if there has to be some sort of rules or prevention for this website to be popular amongst the general population.
I feel this text is very useful because this is an upcoming website that is breaking boundaries. It provides us with some sort of idea of what may be going too far. This is a social network but it may be pushing the limit and can be causing more harm than good. It depends on your own interpretation to what your opinion is about this website. This site shows us how privacy may be no longer. You are now introducing yourself to people by random online who have control over you as long as you stay on with that particular person. The site is seen in many different ways, but it is up to the person to make a decision on if this site is safe for the average person of any age to explore.
Review by: Cody Keller
Illegal-File Sharing
Summary: The article discusses the effects illegal file sharing has on the music and entertainment industry. The idea of peer-to-peer file sharing and online file sharing through illegal programs such as Bittorent, and Limewire has been a major controversy over recent years. The article posts numerous papers written on file sharing and the industry. Each person has a different claim to how sales are affected and some state factors that influence illegal file sharing. According to the article, one of the researchers, Blackburn claims, " the 'bottom' 3/4 of artists sell more as a consequence of file-sharing while the top 1/4 sell less." As this is still being researched and determined, it's still a huge claim. Rochelandet and Le Guel in 2005 came to the conclusion that the average WTP(willingness to pay) averaged 30 cents, while the average itunes track costs 99 cents. The article was written to observe these claims and see what different models and theories were made off of the information gathered by each researcher. Response: I find the article/website very interesting and helpful to my topic. It examines the whole issue over illegal file sharing, and many people have come up with many different results, non which are official and conclusive yet they're trying to determine what affect P2P sharing has on the music industry. The author who compiled the informaton did a great job in making it straight forward and easy to access and obtain information from. He even posted another recent article that examines P2P behavior in the UK and its effect on the economy currently. Usefullness: The article is very useful to me, and is a major help in getting me on my feet toward further exploring my topic. I can use it as a successful starting point, and pull some information from it, as well as the reference posted at the bottom of the page. I'm sure I'll continue to come back to this article/page and access information in order to help further pursue options.
Summary:
This article is about the usage of social bookmarking sites and their abilities to produce more traffic on web pages. The article gives a description of how Stumble Upon actually works and the different features that it offers. For example, it states that the users of Stumble Upon will be brought to a web page and are immediately given access to rate the site with a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Depending on how the users rate the site, more or less Stumble Upon traffic and users will be brought to the site. This article was written by the author to describe how to use this effect to enable your websites to get more hits or traffic. Because of Stumble Upon's social backing, users are able to obtain better search results because they can join communities and follow the sites which other people have liked.
Response:
I feel that this article was very interesting in two ways. First off being the idea of Stumble Upon and its many useful social bookmarking traits, and secondly I thought that it was interesting how the author was using the site as a way to spread information to others by increasing traffic to his web pages. Instead of using the site to search for interesting and useful information, the author was using it as a way to spread information.
Usefulness:
This article will be useful to me because I believe that it gives a good background as to how Stumble Upon can be used as a way to search for information or used as a way to spread information. I think that this article showed just how dynamic the internet can be and its many uses.
Summary:
This article is about Spalding a basketball equipment band introducing its newest innovated basketball of the twentieth century. The basketball has the newest features available and more such as the new NEVERFLAT technology. Designed specifically for extended use of the ball guaranteed to last 10 times longer than a ordinary basketball without reinflating it. The NEVERFLAT design is unique in that it can hold constant air pressure for long periods of time, which will revolutionize the technology found in a basketballs composition. The author is trying to portray that the NEVERFLAT basketball is the next step in satisfying the consumer to their fullest needs and desires in sporting technology and equipment. They are also trying to explain to the consumers that Spalding is not out of ideas yet after one hundred plus years of service.
Response:
First off I have many questions on this article. The first would be, what will be Spalding's next technological breakthrough? My second question would be, now that the technology has been released how will Spalding compete with its other competitors? Lastly is the product so over hyped in that after a consumer purchases it they will find it worth while or just another piece of junk to add to their collections? Although I have many questions as to why the ball is released I am fascinated by the technology released and how sophisticated it is for a more than simple basketball. I was also fascinated by the interest of something as small as a ball, and to modify it to the peak of perfection.
Usefulness:
I learned from this article how advanced something as simple as a basketball can be turned into a pleasurable item with just a few modifications. This article was also useful to inform the public about an unbiased factual study about this product. This text supports my research by informing the public about every part of the game being as important as the next.
Summary: This article discusses about the Dixson high school board decided to discontinue all sports at the school due to budget cuts. The school faces a 20 million dollar budget and to fix the problem they decided to cancel all sports teams. This did not sit well with either the kids at the school or the parents of those kids. In response to the school canceling all the sports teams seasons the parents started fundraising for money. They raised over 20,000 dollars and they said that they intend to get up to 85,000 dollars by the end of the year.
Response: I found this article very inspiring and it really made me think about how lucky I was when I was in high school and was able to play whatever sport that I wanted. Ever since budget cuts I feel like kid's need sports more than ever and canceling all the seasons because of budget cuts is just too drastic of a move by the high school. Where would the moral be of the high school if they had no sporting events to go to. Where would be the motivation for even going to school? I know that when I played sports in high school it was really fun and I'll always have memories of it.
Usefulness: What I learned from this article is that we take many things for granted and for instance high school sports is one of them. I am glad and appreciate that i was able to play high school sports or at least had the option to play sports. Since reading this article I appreciate old things a little more.
Summary:
The World Dubai is today’s greatest development. It stretches the limits on engineering, architecture, investments, and even the imagination. There is nothing else like it in the world. A bran new island development of, “sea, sand, and sky.” It is located in the Arabian Gulf off the coast of Dubai where islands of sand were created in the middle of the sea to mimic the depiction of the world. Investors have had the opportunity to buy individual lots ranging in low-density, mid-high density, resort, and commercial development. Construction is currently in progress and will be livable in the near future.
Response:
I found this article extremely interesting. I think the thing that is so intriguing about this article is that there is nothing else like it in the world. A never before seen phenomenon. Today our country is progressively getting more and more overpopulated. Would this help? I mean, all we need is more room right? So why don’t we expand our continent by building these Venetian like communities? This seems like a fairly easy answer to the problem but I am sure there are a lot of other things to consider. Our country is already in a deficit and how many people really have the money to invest? Would people be resistant because of the Tsunami and the tragedy in Haiti? Is it environmentally safe?
Usefulness:
What I want to know is why there hasn’t been more discussion about this topic in the media. Maybe the media is waiting for the big premier reveal before showing this creation to the world. It just seems that there would be more discussion about such a revolutionary event.
Reviewed by: Chris Hansen
I’ve been reading blogs about fixed gears and looking up information about them and I came across a website that was dedicated to informing people about everything he could about fixed gear bikes. He had tips on how to convert bikes you already have into fixed gear bikes and how to find a cheap track bike to set up your very own fixed gear if you wanted to. He had health tips and health concerns, warning every one of the dangers of riding fixed as well as the health benefits. I’ve now heard that riding fixed gear bikes is both good and bad for your knees. I have yet to find out which is true. He talks about how the continuous pedaling is good for keeping your legs loose and it helps improve circulation throughout your body. This article was very helpful in showing me all the fine points to riding fixed gear bikes and to what people who know nothing about the bikes are learning and how they are learning from other people online in these communities. What I’d like to know next though is if riding fixed is good for your knees or not. I’d like a definitive answer. If there isn’t one out there to be found I’d like as much information on the subject as I can find. Sheldon Brown
Reviewed by: Chris Hansen
I've recently come across many blogs about fixed gear bikes and their riders. The blogs range from information about events to the newest fixed gear parts being sold. Like the blog, Bomb-Hills-Speed-kills, he writes about new things coming out for fixed gear bikes and he adds his opinion about everything he posts. He has an RSS feed in the upper left corner to help you connect to where he gets his information for the blog. He adds all sorts of media, from pictures to video about these bikes. Blogs like these are popping up everywhere. Other bloggers write about events that are coming up and about actual track biking, the sport in the Olympics. These blogs have been been spotted everywhere and they're becoming more and more popular as the fixed bike gets more popular. Most of these bloggers post up videos, either professional or amateur, but they all have people riding these bikes. Trick videos, weaving through traffic videos, just people riding their bikes. Communities of fixed gear riders sprout up in cities and then a blog written by at least one of them pops up. They're becoming ever more popular with each passing day. I want to know when these bikes are going to be sold to little kids, in Toys R Us or something. Bomb hills speed kills
As with every cultural phenomenon there will always be people that don’t like what is going on. When it comes to fixed gear bikes, magazines like “Time” and “Wired Magazine” have some harsh things to say. The article I read about fixed gear bikes was all about how people have come to dislike them and the people who ride them, labeling them as, “A bunch of dumpster diving hooligans”. The article comments on how “Wired magazine” wrote a piece about Deadguy, a cyclist who got hit by a car and flew 40 feet through the air until he finally hit a lamp post. Somehow they spun the article to make it look like riding a fixed gear bike was the main reason why he was hit by the car. Other articles have referred to fixed gear bikes as big wheels, children’s toy bikes. The piece I read uses a lot of appeal to emotion to get their point across to the community of fixed gear riders. He adds all these condescending remarks to get us to feel bad for fixed gear riders as well as to promote them at the same time.
I believe that the writer did a great job pulling his audience into the text. He knows exactly what to say and how to say it to get them to do exactly what he wants them to do. I think it’s interesting that the writer adds their own commentary to the piece and adds their thoughts on everything that’s going on. They state, “Oh also: you suck” to get their audience to agree with them and to make the people writing these articles to play against fixed gear riders come off as horrible people.
I’d like to know more about how many people actually do dislike fixed gear bikes and their riders enough to go out of their way to say something about it; apparently enough for some of these magazine and newspaper writers to put down an article about them.
This text could be very useful because it shows how there is an online community for these bikes. People go out of their way to say something about them. The author is very biased toward his side of the argument, but I don’t think they were in the wrong based on what was said about the author’s passion.
Bomb hills. Speed Kills: got 21 minutes to kill?: stairways to heaven etc.
Jordan Sanchez Bomb Hills. Speed Kills. Blog
Summary: I found a Blog on pretty much everything about fixed gear bikes. The Latest parts, the news spots to ride, the newest bikes, ways to improve your riding, how to do tricks, rides all over the world, everything on one blog. This guy Jmik is a fixed gear bike rider from San Jose who currently resides here in Chico for college who blogs about his opinions or information all and about fixed gear bikes and the whole community (Honestly this guy is my cousin, but his page really does help for my topic). Jmik blogs about everything and something that really caught my eye was his blog labeled "got 21 minutes to kill?: stairways to heaven". He posted about a video that someone has recently filmed about a fixed gear race down in Southern California. Included in this entry was this link to this video (which is this if anyone wanted to watch it: Stairway to Heaven Race). Now from the Blog it connected me to this other site that has this video about this race involving fixed gear cyclist in a racers point of view. Also within his entry he wrote to fixed gear cyclist out there that LA is a great place to ride
Response: When I read this Blog immediately learn a little more and more about the fixed gear community. In each entry I read about new products and new areas to ride, or new bikes to check out, which if I were in a fixed gear cyclist's point of view, or even someone that just wants to learn about these bikes, this blog is a perfect way to learn about it. What's really cool about the blog is that it really communicates what’s the latest thing in fixed gears. Also I can see on this blog that there is a twitter account which is another way he can communicate to other people or even other bloggers.
Usefulness: This is very useful because you can find what the latest thing is about these bikes and how people communicate about this whole fixed gear scene. Reading this blog also opens up other questions such as how else are people communicating about these bikes because there’s no TV show that really talks about them except maybe the news.
Fixed gear Fad
Jordan Sanchez fixed gear fad
The Article “Hipsters, Fads and Fixed Gear Bikes” is pretty much about a rant and rave about Hipsters and their fads and fixed gear bikes. Hipsters also known as posers are apparently all over LA, wearing tight vintage style jeans, vans, smoking a cigarette and more and more of them these days have been getting these bikes called fixed gear bikes, also known as track bikes and fixies. A Lot of these kinds of bikes are commonly used by athletes for training purposes, such as lance Armstrong, or bike messengers because of their simplicity and low maintenance. The increase of fixed gear riders or hipsters riding these bikes are dangerous, especially if it’s something to just be cool at and ride around, because they are usually brake less bikes that require leg power instead of mechanics to stop the bike. Pretty much this article talks about this new fad of fixed gear bikes
There has been a large increase of people riding fixed gear bikes on the streets have been some in which they are to be called hipsters because a lot of them do it because others do it. But as being a fixed gear bike rider they do have benefits because like in the article, the idea of no coasting and no brakes require you to be one with the bike and be aware of your surroundings. I ride a fixed gear bike and I do say it’s fun and cool but a lot of people don’t understand that there just bikes and not some sense of style to use as a coolness factor. There are a lot of haters out there because they are dangerous; some even say they aren’t even real bikes. But this is a new and increasing sport because of the uniqueness of this type of riding. It’s almost like skating, it started slow then started to become really popular and now it’s is one of these extreme sports. Fixed gear bikes are the same way whether they are tricked out to be aerodynamic and made for speed on a velodrome, ore tricked out to be this new type of BMX style of riding, fixed gear bikes are increasing in many communities across the world. They are messengers in a lot of cities including San Francisco who ride fixed gear, no coasting, brakeless bikes down these huge hills which are getting the interest of people everywhere. There are people that are starting to do BMX style tricks on these bikes like 180s or riding backwards or grinds and what not. These bikes are starting to sold EVERYWHERE at almost every bike shop and even in clothing stores such as Urban Outfitters since it is a fashion fad too. The interest of fixed gear bikes is becoming huge, and people better be watch out for the dangers of them.
I want to know how fixed gear bikes are affecting the world today, How popular they are across the world and how people are using the internet to communicate about this new style of bike riding, because it’s not really on tv at all.
Jordan Sanchez
TrickTrack
SacFixedGear
SJFixed
Summary: So I’m Researching Fixed gear bikes and their online communities and I came across a lot of online forums specifically about fixed gear bikes and a lot of them are mainly tied around there real community outside of the online world. Forums such as, Sacfixedgear.com, Davis Fixed, LA Fixed, Aloha Fixed, SJ Fixed, and tricktrack.org. There all of these people online talking about these bikes. This is a way for them to communicate about the latest parts, the sickest builds, the coolest tricks, the best places to ride. The list goes on and on about discussions about everything you can think about fixed gear bikes, and then some. The forum that I am mainly checking out is Tricktrack.org. I was on this forum and just going through it you can see its where everyone everywhere with a fixed gear bike is communicating. I see people on there from Sacramento, San Jose, New York; all are there with this common interest, fixed gear bikes. There’s also a place where either “noobs” or new people that are just getting into it can go and find out more so they can start riding a fixed gear bike.
Response: This Forum is a great place for a person to be informed about fixed gear bikes. It’s a place where anyone who is interested in this style of riding goes and just talks about pretty much everything! I can see people from everywhere on there. There’s even a place for Vendors to talk about this new releases or new items that they’re going to start making. Forums such as tricktrack.org, Sacfixedgear, SJfixed…etc. are great places for anyone to talk about fixed gear bikes and tell everyone what they have to offer to new information.
Usefulness: These forums are very important to my research because they really show how online communities communicate about fixed gear bikes.
Kiljan Cochran
Listen out for the dubstep revolution
by Nick Kelly
Summary: The article talks about how the dubstep scene is expanding beyond the local underground. In 2006 BBC radio dedicated a full show to the genre called Dub Warz. DJ Mary Anne Hobbs also organized a show showcasing dubstep at last years Electronic Arts festival. The article also mentions three artists that helped popularize dubstep. Skream, Burial and Kode 9. The author also has a strong hunch that dubstep will explode this summer.
Response: I like this article. It answered a lot of my questions about how dubstep is growing. And it explained more how dubstep emerged from the heart of london.
Usefulness: Its usefulness definitely opens the doors to more research. Almost every word was a link to more articles or forums about dubstep.
http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/listen-out-for-the-dubstep-revolution-1378579.html
Cody Keller
http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_news/20100209.html
Summary: The article discusses the Italian Supreme Court taking action against illegal file-sharing. The court already, in 2008 ordered ISP's to block bittorent sites, however it was overturned. They've now declared that all ISP's block bittorent sites even if they are outside of the country. The court said the sites, "[constitute]a form of complicity in the offense of copyright infringement."
Response: The article is useful because one of my questions is wondering what governments are doing to prevent file-sharing in their countries. The italian government is the first "successful" issue of blocking file-sharing sites from their citizens. I expect to look into this more, and find out if any countries are following this too.
Usefulness: The article is useful because it helps me answer a question I've been asking, and it also gives me a great site to continue my research on my topic. I can keep updated with current news on the illegal file-sharing and music industry areas.
Alex Rincon
http://www.cronknews.com/
Summary:This article discusses the dangers and the lack of knowledge that come along with the popular website chatroulette.com. Since the site is lacking major popularity, but has since rushed and began taking over the internet scene, chatroulette.com is a place for first users to explore. Here in this article we see at a university a conference call was made to set up an interview through chatroulette.com. The people doing this did not realize that the site does not directly connect people but by random. These people were exposed to people while doing this and now face charges.
Response:When reading this my initial reaction was, why would someone use something without any knowledge. Then I thought about it and it makes complete sense. People initially are going to want to explore new things to see what they are all about. This explains some of the popularity with the site. People are willing to try something, but will the popularity continue after people try it, and are exposed to th efeatures that come along with the site?
Usefulness:This articles usefulness is important in my opinion because it shows the range that this site has reached out to. People are using at universities, people are exploring all over the world. The site has caught so much attention that it will continue to become popular, until people realize what the site truly holds.
Burj Khalifa
Lissa Cunningham
Summary: The Burj Khalifa is currently the tallest building in the world. This website gives an allotment of information ranging from statistics, interest in visitation, the surroundings, whats inside, how it was built, and more. The Burj can attract people for many different reasons. Site seeing is amazing here with the tallest observation deck in the world. One can rent or by a space to live in and companies may buy or rent out floors for business. Certain floors are designated as hotel space for travelers to stay with water features, a fitness club, a park, and a club for entertainment.
Response: I found that there was a lot more to the Burj than I had originally expected. The building occupies many different features and serves as a multipurpose building attracting various types of individuals. It was interesting to learn about the structural soundness of the building and how it was achieved. Since Dubai is currently in debt I would like to know more about how much this structure actually cost and how many floors are currently occupied bringing in profit. I would also like to look into how the people live there since this building seems to be a community within itself and how those people operate. I would also like to know how this has affected the surrounding communities as well since it is located in the heart of Dubai.
Usefulness: This site not only answers almost every question about the Burj but also shares links to useful cites for nearby entertainment since it is located in the center of downtown Dubai. I would like to use this information to look into the nearby entertain and touch on the surrounding communities as I discussed earlier. I can also use this information to compile a list of technological achievements for my paper since it has many statistics and comparisons in it.
BBC- How Damaging is Illegal File-Sharing?
Reviewed by: Cody Keller
Summary: The article talks about how about the effects of Illegal File-Sharing/Downloading on the economy of the UK and the potential risks if the act of downloading is continued. The article states: "the report says that almost 10,000 new jobs would be created if peer-to-peer piracy was 100% eliminated." It goes on to say, "up to 800,000 jobs in the creative industries, out of 1.8 million in total, are threatened almost half of the entire industry equivalent to 8% of GDP." In the end the article describes that illegal file-sharing needs to be stopped in order to help save some of the economy.
Response: The article is somewhat helpful. There are numerous replies via posts at the end in response to the article. It's very helpful to read what people have to say from a personal level, and I think it also helps me to develop my own view and taste on the subject.
Usefulness: I find the article very useful, referring to the comments everyone posted at the end in response to the article, as I already stated. I think it will help me further pursue forums and/or blogs on the matter because I know now that they exist and that this topic is very much active and seems highly debated and contested.
Site: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2009/05/how_damaging_is_illegal_filesh.html
The Growth of Dubstep, offline
Reviewed by: Kiljan Cochran
Summary: The article talks about how Dubstep has been accelerating at a constant exponential rate since the early 00's, and how one of the main causes for this is the internet. The article then steers towards the titles meaning, talking about how festivals and raves are over looked when determining the advancement of the genre.
Response: This article I actually found exciting. It went on after to elaborate on a club night called Hospitality. It jumped around not really describing the vibe of the festival or what style of Dubstep, but did grab my attention.http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_london&query=detail&event=351991 This is the link where tickets can be purchased.
Usefulness: The article was useful in the sense of better understanding the progression and expansion of dubstep. The internet allows artists to demo and disperse there music for little to zero dollars, and also untill recently how the rave community, literally, as in a community offline, is helping spread the word.
http://getdarker.tv/articles/the-growth-of-dubstep-offline-hospitality-matter/
What is Dubstep?
Reviewed by: Kiljan Cochran
Summary: I finally settled on a topic for the year, "Dubstep". It's a genre of dance music that most often consists of heavy bass and extreme resonance alteration. During my research I found an article on Dubstep simply called, What is Dubstep? It gives brief history on how Dubstep emerged in in the UK dance scene in 1999. The term Dubstep was not coined until 2002 however. The article simply explains the basics of the genre. Most Dubstep songs can be recognized by a tempo of 140 beats per minute, which usually resembles a 2-step rhythm. By 2006 , Dubstep had skyrocketed and was gradually being integrated in the American dance/rave scene.
Response: What is Dubstep? Well fortunately I'm very fond and familiar with the genre, so I had a general consensus. As for someone with no knowledge of Dubstep, this article is to broad. Dubstep is a very unique genre and simply can not be though of as "Dance Music".
Usefulness: The article was definitely to broad, but it does reach a consensus that leaves readers with basic knowledge of the genre. Certainly enough to provoke exploration of Dubstep.
http://dancetechnomusic.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_is_dubstep
The Palms Dubai
If you are researching aspects of community in online contexts, post your research annotations here.
Reviewed by: Lissa Cunningham
The Palms Dubai
Summary: I found an article on “The Palms” Dubai that relates to my previous article of “The World” Dubai. The World was an idea that sprang from the concept of The Palms. The Palms Dubai are also manmade islands but instead in the shape of a Palm Tree. There are three of these “palm trees” named Palm Jabel Ali, Palm Jumeirah, and Palm Deira. The islands are shaped as a palm tree for the purpose of creating more beach front locations as appose to one circular island. Almost every location has a beach front view. The Palm Jumeirah has been fully completed and has some residents moved in. For entertainment there is everything from shopping malls to water parks. You can get to the island via the mainland or there are a series of sub-sea tunnels being created for alternate transportation.
Response: Nakheel is the developing company who has been creating all the islands. The article states that the ruler of Dubai came to Nakeel with the idea of The Palms. The article states that, “few realize it was created to help solve Dubai's beach shortage.” This was really an innovative, abstract way of solving this problem. And it seems to have worked. Dubai now has substantially more beach fronts than they did before. Unfortunately most production has stopped so only a small portion of it is actually usable.
Usefulness: After viewing the massive productions involved in creating the islands I began to wonder how this would be affecting the environment. There is an enormous amount of construction at sea happening that I would imagine is disrupting a wide variety of sea life and their habitats. The only environmental issue that this article addressed is that The Palm Jebel Ali helps pioneer sea grass research. It states that the marine life around the island is flourishing but was it damaged during construction? This would be something to consider for future productions. Nakheel has a plan that is on hold to build The Universe in the same way. Before production begins I think environmental issues should be addressed more in depth and more publicly.
Reviewed by: Brian MacMillan
Fears over Facebook identity Fraud
http://www.diigo.com/09gvo
Summary: This article describes how when people use facebook that they put too much personal information on their page and it lets hackers easily steal from others. The article goes into detail about how facebook has become extremely popular in the UK. The problem in the UK is that facebook asks for such personal questions from when they were a child to when they are an adult that it is very easy for hackers to hack into peoples personal items such as their bank accounts. These questions are so personal that if you were to open an account at a bank the bank would ask you similar questions. The article then goes on how online banking fraud has gone up 44% in the last year and this is a major problem because if people are putting this personal information online then it will be even easier for hackers to hack into places. This is becoming such a major problem because an estimated 10,000 people are joining facebook a day. The article then goes on on how to stop these hackers that they need to ask the customers specific questions that only that person would know so the hackers would have no chance of stealing.
Response: After reading this article I feel very different about what I exactly put on my facebook page. If that many people are being hacked and stolen from then I agree with the article in that there needs to be better protection. The author I thought did a great job in making it very clear that some of the stuff people are putting on their facebook page is too personal and in the end they could end up getting stolen from.
Usefulness: This article is very useful to me when starting my paper. It allows me to give statistics and inform people about what is going on with facebook. When starting my paper I will be able to pull information out of this article and relate it to my topic. This will become a huge roll in my paper and is a great starting point.
Reviewed by: Alex Rincon
Chatroulette
http://www.yaledailynews.com/scene/scene-cover/2010/02/12/the-new-world-of-chatroulette/
This is article is about a new website that is connecting people randomly, allowing people to see someone at random choice through their computer screen. The site is called chatroulette.com and your are connected with a person that you do not know and you are able to talk to them and if you choose you can click the next button and go to a different person. The article describes a man going on it and meeting people from all different ages and from different parts of the world. The article discusses the awkward encounters met through this website. “Exhibitionists proudly display their genitalia, unruly teens toss up middle fingers for sport, and then, the lonely, vacant faces. There are swarming masses of self-conscious suburban girls, Japanese soldiers, sadomasochists from Brooklyn, amateur surfers in Melbourne, mostly inebriated college students.” The author shows the danger that comes along with this popular website.
This makes me wonder why there are no regulations on this website. I feel like an incident is waiting to happen before a lawsuit occurs. I find this website to be interesting but I do not understand why there are no regulations on the website. I feel as if there has to be some sort of rules or prevention for this website to be popular amongst the general population.
I feel this text is very useful because this is an upcoming website that is breaking boundaries. It provides us with some sort of idea of what may be going too far. This is a social network but it may be pushing the limit and can be causing more harm than good. It depends on your own interpretation to what your opinion is about this website. This site shows us how privacy may be no longer. You are now introducing yourself to people by random online who have control over you as long as you stay on with that particular person. The site is seen in many different ways, but it is up to the person to make a decision on if this site is safe for the average person of any age to explore.
Review by: Cody Keller
Illegal-File Sharing
Summary: The article discusses the effects illegal file sharing has on the music and entertainment industry. The idea of peer-to-peer file sharing and online file sharing through illegal programs such as Bittorent, and Limewire has been a major controversy over recent years. The article posts numerous papers written on file sharing and the industry. Each person has a different claim to how sales are affected and some state factors that influence illegal file sharing. According to the article, one of the researchers, Blackburn claims, " the 'bottom' 3/4 of artists sell more as a consequence of file-sharing while the top 1/4 sell less." As this is still being researched and determined, it's still a huge claim. Rochelandet and Le Guel in 2005 came to the conclusion that the average WTP(willingness to pay) averaged 30 cents, while the average itunes track costs 99 cents. The article was written to observe these claims and see what different models and theories were made off of the information gathered by each researcher.
Response: I find the article/website very interesting and helpful to my topic. It examines the whole issue over illegal file sharing, and many people have come up with many different results, non which are official and conclusive yet they're trying to determine what affect P2P sharing has on the music industry. The author who compiled the informaton did a great job in making it straight forward and easy to access and obtain information from. He even posted another recent article that examines P2P behavior in the UK and its effect on the economy currently.
Usefullness: The article is very useful to me, and is a major help in getting me on my feet toward further exploring my topic. I can use it as a successful starting point, and pull some information from it, as well as the reference posted at the bottom of the page. I'm sure I'll continue to come back to this article/page and access information in order to help further pursue options.
http://www.rufuspollock.org/economics/p2p_summary.html
Review by: Scott Phillips
Stumble Upon
Summary:
This article is about the usage of social bookmarking sites and their abilities to produce more traffic on web pages. The article gives a description of how Stumble Upon actually works and the different features that it offers. For example, it states that the users of Stumble Upon will be brought to a web page and are immediately given access to rate the site with a thumbs up or a thumbs down. Depending on how the users rate the site, more or less Stumble Upon traffic and users will be brought to the site. This article was written by the author to describe how to use this effect to enable your websites to get more hits or traffic. Because of Stumble Upon's social backing, users are able to obtain better search results because they can join communities and follow the sites which other people have liked.
Response:
I feel that this article was very interesting in two ways. First off being the idea of Stumble Upon and its many useful social bookmarking traits, and secondly I thought that it was interesting how the author was using the site as a way to spread information to others by increasing traffic to his web pages. Instead of using the site to search for interesting and useful information, the author was using it as a way to spread information.
Usefulness:
This article will be useful to me because I believe that it gives a good background as to how Stumble Upon can be used as a way to search for information or used as a way to spread information. I think that this article showed just how dynamic the internet can be and its many uses.
http://internetjobscams.blogspot.com/2009/07/stumble-upon-effective-way-for.html
Review by: Saam Anwer
NEVERFLAT basketball
http://www.diigo.com/09cd7
Summary:
This article is about Spalding a basketball equipment band introducing its newest innovated basketball of the twentieth century. The basketball has the newest features available and more such as the new NEVERFLAT technology. Designed specifically for extended use of the ball guaranteed to last 10 times longer than a ordinary basketball without reinflating it. The NEVERFLAT design is unique in that it can hold constant air pressure for long periods of time, which will revolutionize the technology found in a basketballs composition. The author is trying to portray that the NEVERFLAT basketball is the next step in satisfying the consumer to their fullest needs and desires in sporting technology and equipment. They are also trying to explain to the consumers that Spalding is not out of ideas yet after one hundred plus years of service.
Response:
First off I have many questions on this article. The first would be, what will be Spalding's next technological breakthrough? My second question would be, now that the technology has been released how will Spalding compete with its other competitors? Lastly is the product so over hyped in that after a consumer purchases it they will find it worth while or just another piece of junk to add to their collections? Although I have many questions as to why the ball is released I am fascinated by the technology released and how sophisticated it is for a more than simple basketball. I was also fascinated by the interest of something as small as a ball, and to modify it to the peak of perfection.
Usefulness:
I learned from this article how advanced something as simple as a basketball can be turned into a pleasurable item with just a few modifications. This article was also useful to inform the public about an unbiased factual study about this product. This text supports my research by informing the public about every part of the game being as important as the next.
Review by: Brian MacMillan
Sports In Dixon
http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=25&hid=8&sid=c68774d8-abec-4c7b-95d5-65cb6e9da46%40sessionmgr10&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGI2ZQ%3d%3d#db=aph&AN=JOE325925233709
Summary: This article discusses about the Dixson high school board decided to discontinue all sports at the school due to budget cuts. The school faces a 20 million dollar budget and to fix the problem they decided to cancel all sports teams. This did not sit well with either the kids at the school or the parents of those kids. In response to the school canceling all the sports teams seasons the parents started fundraising for money. They raised over 20,000 dollars and they said that they intend to get up to 85,000 dollars by the end of the year.
Response: I found this article very inspiring and it really made me think about how lucky I was when I was in high school and was able to play whatever sport that I wanted. Ever since budget cuts I feel like kid's need sports more than ever and canceling all the seasons because of budget cuts is just too drastic of a move by the high school. Where would the moral be of the high school if they had no sporting events to go to. Where would be the motivation for even going to school? I know that when I played sports in high school it was really fun and I'll always have memories of it.
Usefulness: What I learned from this article is that we take many things for granted and for instance high school sports is one of them. I am glad and appreciate that i was able to play high school sports or at least had the option to play sports. Since reading this article I appreciate old things a little more.
Review by: Lissa Cunningham
The World Dubai
http://www.theworld.ae/
Summary:
The World Dubai is today’s greatest development. It stretches the limits on engineering, architecture, investments, and even the imagination. There is nothing else like it in the world. A bran new island development of, “sea, sand, and sky.” It is located in the Arabian Gulf off the coast of Dubai where islands of sand were created in the middle of the sea to mimic the depiction of the world. Investors have had the opportunity to buy individual lots ranging in low-density, mid-high density, resort, and commercial development. Construction is currently in progress and will be livable in the near future.
Response:
I found this article extremely interesting. I think the thing that is so intriguing about this article is that there is nothing else like it in the world. A never before seen phenomenon. Today our country is progressively getting more and more overpopulated. Would this help? I mean, all we need is more room right? So why don’t we expand our continent by building these Venetian like communities? This seems like a fairly easy answer to the problem but I am sure there are a lot of other things to consider. Our country is already in a deficit and how many people really have the money to invest? Would people be resistant because of the Tsunami and the tragedy in Haiti? Is it environmentally safe?
Usefulness:
What I want to know is why there hasn’t been more discussion about this topic in the media. Maybe the media is waiting for the big premier reveal before showing this creation to the world. It just seems that there would be more discussion about such a revolutionary event.
Reviewed by: Chris Hansen
I’ve been reading blogs about fixed gears and looking up information about them and I came across a website that was dedicated to informing people about everything he could about fixed gear bikes. He had tips on how to convert bikes you already have into fixed gear bikes and how to find a cheap track bike to set up your very own fixed gear if you wanted to. He had health tips and health concerns, warning every one of the dangers of riding fixed as well as the health benefits. I’ve now heard that riding fixed gear bikes is both good and bad for your knees. I have yet to find out which is true. He talks about how the continuous pedaling is good for keeping your legs loose and it helps improve circulation throughout your body. This article was very helpful in showing me all the fine points to riding fixed gear bikes and to what people who know nothing about the bikes are learning and how they are learning from other people online in these communities. What I’d like to know next though is if riding fixed is good for your knees or not. I’d like a definitive answer. If there isn’t one out there to be found I’d like as much information on the subject as I can find.
Sheldon Brown
Reviewed by: Chris Hansen
I've recently come across many blogs about fixed gear bikes and their riders. The blogs range from information about events to the newest fixed gear parts being sold. Like the blog, Bomb-Hills-Speed-kills, he writes about new things coming out for fixed gear bikes and he adds his opinion about everything he posts. He has an RSS feed in the upper left corner to help you connect to where he gets his information for the blog. He adds all sorts of media, from pictures to video about these bikes. Blogs like these are popping up everywhere. Other bloggers write about events that are coming up and about actual track biking, the sport in the Olympics. These blogs have been been spotted everywhere and they're becoming more and more popular as the fixed bike gets more popular. Most of these bloggers post up videos, either professional or amateur, but they all have people riding these bikes. Trick videos, weaving through traffic videos, just people riding their bikes. Communities of fixed gear riders sprout up in cities and then a blog written by at least one of them pops up. They're becoming ever more popular with each passing day. I want to know when these bikes are going to be sold to little kids, in Toys R Us or something.
Bomb hills speed kills
Fixed Gear Bikes
Chris Hansen
Haters
As with every cultural phenomenon there will always be people that don’t like what is going on. When it comes to fixed gear bikes, magazines like “Time” and “Wired Magazine” have some harsh things to say. The article I read about fixed gear bikes was all about how people have come to dislike them and the people who ride them, labeling them as, “A bunch of dumpster diving hooligans”. The article comments on how “Wired magazine” wrote a piece about Deadguy, a cyclist who got hit by a car and flew 40 feet through the air until he finally hit a lamp post. Somehow they spun the article to make it look like riding a fixed gear bike was the main reason why he was hit by the car. Other articles have referred to fixed gear bikes as big wheels, children’s toy bikes. The piece I read uses a lot of appeal to emotion to get their point across to the community of fixed gear riders. He adds all these condescending remarks to get us to feel bad for fixed gear riders as well as to promote them at the same time.
I believe that the writer did a great job pulling his audience into the text. He knows exactly what to say and how to say it to get them to do exactly what he wants them to do. I think it’s interesting that the writer adds their own commentary to the piece and adds their thoughts on everything that’s going on. They state, “Oh also: you suck” to get their audience to agree with them and to make the people writing these articles to play against fixed gear riders come off as horrible people.
I’d like to know more about how many people actually do dislike fixed gear bikes and their riders enough to go out of their way to say something about it; apparently enough for some of these magazine and newspaper writers to put down an article about them.
This text could be very useful because it shows how there is an online community for these bikes. People go out of their way to say something about them. The author is very biased toward his side of the argument, but I don’t think they were in the wrong based on what was said about the author’s passion.
Bomb hills. Speed Kills: got 21 minutes to kill?: stairways to heaven etc.
Jordan Sanchez
Bomb Hills. Speed Kills. Blog
Summary: I found a Blog on pretty much everything about fixed gear bikes. The Latest parts, the news spots to ride, the newest bikes, ways to improve your riding, how to do tricks, rides all over the world, everything on one blog. This guy Jmik is a fixed gear bike rider from San Jose who currently resides here in Chico for college who blogs about his opinions or information all and about fixed gear bikes and the whole community (Honestly this guy is my cousin, but his page really does help for my topic). Jmik blogs about everything and something that really caught my eye was his blog labeled "got 21 minutes to kill?: stairways to heaven". He posted about a video that someone has recently filmed about a fixed gear race down in Southern California. Included in this entry was this link to this video (which is this if anyone wanted to watch it: Stairway to Heaven Race). Now from the Blog it connected me to this other site that has this video about this race involving fixed gear cyclist in a racers point of view. Also within his entry he wrote to fixed gear cyclist out there that LA is a great place to ride
Response: When I read this Blog immediately learn a little more and more about the fixed gear community. In each entry I read about new products and new areas to ride, or new bikes to check out, which if I were in a fixed gear cyclist's point of view, or even someone that just wants to learn about these bikes, this blog is a perfect way to learn about it. What's really cool about the blog is that it really communicates what’s the latest thing in fixed gears. Also I can see on this blog that there is a twitter account which is another way he can communicate to other people or even other bloggers.
Usefulness: This is very useful because you can find what the latest thing is about these bikes and how people communicate about this whole fixed gear scene. Reading this blog also opens up other questions such as how else are people communicating about these bikes because there’s no TV show that really talks about them except maybe the news.
Fixed gear Fad
Jordan Sanchez
fixed gear fad
The Article “Hipsters, Fads and Fixed Gear Bikes” is pretty much about a rant and rave about Hipsters and their fads and fixed gear bikes. Hipsters also known as posers are apparently all over LA, wearing tight vintage style jeans, vans, smoking a cigarette and more and more of them these days have been getting these bikes called fixed gear bikes, also known as track bikes and fixies. A Lot of these kinds of bikes are commonly used by athletes for training purposes, such as lance Armstrong, or bike messengers because of their simplicity and low maintenance. The increase of fixed gear riders or hipsters riding these bikes are dangerous, especially if it’s something to just be cool at and ride around, because they are usually brake less bikes that require leg power instead of mechanics to stop the bike. Pretty much this article talks about this new fad of fixed gear bikes
There has been a large increase of people riding fixed gear bikes on the streets have been some in which they are to be called hipsters because a lot of them do it because others do it. But as being a fixed gear bike rider they do have benefits because like in the article, the idea of no coasting and no brakes require you to be one with the bike and be aware of your surroundings. I ride a fixed gear bike and I do say it’s fun and cool but a lot of people don’t understand that there just bikes and not some sense of style to use as a coolness factor. There are a lot of haters out there because they are dangerous; some even say they aren’t even real bikes. But this is a new and increasing sport because of the uniqueness of this type of riding. It’s almost like skating, it started slow then started to become really popular and now it’s is one of these extreme sports. Fixed gear bikes are the same way whether they are tricked out to be aerodynamic and made for speed on a velodrome, ore tricked out to be this new type of BMX style of riding, fixed gear bikes are increasing in many communities across the world. They are messengers in a lot of cities including San Francisco who ride fixed gear, no coasting, brakeless bikes down these huge hills which are getting the interest of people everywhere. There are people that are starting to do BMX style tricks on these bikes like 180s or riding backwards or grinds and what not. These bikes are starting to sold EVERYWHERE at almost every bike shop and even in clothing stores such as Urban Outfitters since it is a fashion fad too. The interest of fixed gear bikes is becoming huge, and people better be watch out for the dangers of them.
I want to know how fixed gear bikes are affecting the world today, How popular they are across the world and how people are using the internet to communicate about this new style of bike riding, because it’s not really on tv at all.